Common Causes
- Red – Bright red or dark red in the stool can indicate bleeding somewhere in the gastrointestinal tract. ...
- Black – Similar to red in the stool, a persistent black color in stool can indicate internal bleeding from esophageal varices. ...
- Grey, Pale, Yellow or Clay-Colored – The liver releases bile into the stool, giving it a normal brown color. ...
Related Conditions
Stool color is affected not only by the actual digestive process (as it moves through the digestive tract, the digesting food changes from green to yellow-orange to brown and the final brown color is due to the bile and bacteria that is present in the stool), but also by diet: food, drink, and even vitamins and supplements.
What color should stool be?
- Beets. Notice red poop after eating beets? ...
- Green Veggies. If you like to load up on greens like spinach, broccoli and lettuce, your poop may reflect that. ...
- Blueberries. Blueberries can cause your poop to have a blue or black tinge. ...
- Food Coloring. In 2017, Oreo and Peeps teamed up to make Peeps Oreos, a novelty snack with a bright pink filling. ...
- Medications. ...
Why is my poop reddish brown?
What does healthy poop look like?
- Color. The poop emoji has one thing right: the brown coloring. ...
- Shape. A somewhat log-like shape is how most poop should come out due to its formation within the intestines.
- Size. ...
- Consistency. ...
- Length of time. ...
- Frequency. ...
What foods change stool color?
What color is a healthy stool?
Why is my stool dark brown?
If your stool is not normal-colored (light or dark brown), it means you have some gut issue, whether it's just food that didn't sit right, food poisoning, or a virus. But sometimes it can be a sign of bleeding (red/black stool), or a liver or gallbladder issue (very pale stool), so don't ignore a discoloration.
Why is my stool red?
While red stool may be caused by ingesting certain foods or medications, red stool can indicate an internal problem. Paying attention to other symptoms such as abdominal pain or discomfort and discussing your concerns with a doctor in a timely manner is important.
Why is my bile green?
Bile travels through the GI tract and changes to brown when it interacts with certain enzymes. If your stool is green, it usually means that you have changed your diet slightly or your food is traveling through the large intestines faster than normal so it doesn’t have enough time to break down and change color.
Why is my stool white?
If your stool is pale in color or white, it usually means that bile isn’t moving through your GI tract. This would mean that there’s an obstruction of the bile duct that isn’t letting the bile flow into the intestine. Sometimes, the color can be from large doses of medications.
What to do if your stool color changes?
If your stool color has changed because of a change in diet and there are no other symptoms, no treatment is needed. If you are bleeding, you may need to go to the hospital, have laboratory and imaging tests, and possibly even a procedure, such as an endoscopy or colonoscopy.
Why is my stool discolored?
In many cases, it could be caused by the food you eat or a medication you’re taking. But if your stool is discolored for a few days, or you have other symptoms, it could be a sign of something more serious.
Why is my poop yellow?
If your stool is yellow, or more likely, contains yellow droplets (seen floating on the toilet bowl), it is a sign of fat in the stool. It can also have a bad odor and a greasy texture. You may see noticeable amounts of fat in your stool when it’s not absorbed properly by the body. Yellow stool can be a sign you’re having malabsorption issues—along with other signs like difficulty maintaining or gaining weight.
Why is my stool dark brown?
Although changes in stool color or texture may be normal, most changes should be evaluated. Stool that is an unusual color may be due to diarrhea; bleeding in the intestine; intestine, pancreas, or liver diseases; and medications.
What is the cause of stool color?
The presence of the bilirubin in the bile (a breakdown product of the hemoglobin in red blood cells that are normally destroyed after a useful life of several weeks) is generally responsible for stool color.
What are symptoms of stool color changes?
Changes in stool color alone do not cause symptoms. The underlying cause of the change in stool color, texture, or form is responsible for any symptoms.
What does it mean when your stool color changes in color, texture, or form?
When these changes in stool do occur, it can mean that there may be an illness affecting the gastrointestinal (GI) tract or the entire body.
How is the cause of stool color changes diagnosed?
In most cases, a diagnosis, if any, cannot be made by stool color alone.
When should I contact my doctor about stool color or texture changes?
Aside from black, red, or maroon stools that may mean bleeding is a possibility, and require urgent assessment and treatment, most color changes are not an emergency. The significance is determined based on other symptoms that might be present.
Why does my stool smell so bad?
There are a variety of reasons why stool will be yellow, greasy, and foul-smelling. It can be due to the intestine's inability to digest and absorb fat because of diseases of the intestinal lining (such as in celiac disease and cystic fibrosis) because the pancreas is unable to manufacture adequate digestive enzymes (such as with chronic pancreatitis or pancreatic cancer that blocks the pancreatic duct), or there is not enough bile being delivered to the intestine (such as in cancer of the liver or bile ducts that are blocked). The yellowness, greasiness, and foul smell are due to the undigested fat.
Why is my poop brown?
Poop’s brown color is mostly due to bile and bilirubin, which are both a yellowish color. When these substances mix with your digested food, intestinal secretions, bacteria, and old red blood cells in your digestive tract, they turn your waste brown.
What happens if you have a color in your poop?
Other symptoms, along with unusual colored poop, that should prompt a visit to the doctor include: diarrhea. constipation.
Why is my poop pale?
gallstones. cysts or tumors in the biliary system. Medications, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), birth control pills, some antibiotics, and anabolic steroids may also cause your poop to be a pale color.
What causes green poop?
Gastrointestinal disorders. Conditions such as Crohn’s disease and celiac disease can cause green poop, depending on what you’ve been eating.
What Do Different Stool Colors Mean?
Different stool colors can mean different things , mostly depending on what you’ve eaten.
Why is my poop different color?
It’s rare for it to be a sign of a serious condition in your digestive system. But if it’s white, bright red, or black, and you don’t think it’s from something you ate, call your doctor.
What causes dark stools?
Medicines that have bismuth subsalicylate (Kaopectate, Pepto-Bismol) can also cause very dark stools.
What foods make your poop orange?
Pumpkin. Sweet potatoes. Foods with orange coloring, such as sodas, candy, or gelatin dessert, can also give your poop an orange color. Also, antibioticsand antacids that have aluminum hydroxide in them can make your stool orange.
Why is my diarrhea green?
It’s likely that your meal moved through your gut too quickly, so the fat-digesting bile didn’t have time to turn brown.
Why is my poop yellow?
Indirectly, your diet could cause yellow poop. If you have celiac disease, your body can’t handle a protein called gluten, which is in wheat, barley, and rye. If you have the condition and eat foods that have gluten, like many breads, pastas, and cookies, your intestineswon’t work as they should.
Why is my poop pale?
Other causes of pale poop. A more serious cause is a lack of bile in your stool. (Remember, bile gives poop its brown color.) Your body makes bile in the liver, stores it in the gallbladder, and releases it into your small intestine to help digest your food.
Why is my stool brown?
Normal stool color is brown. This is due to the presence of bile in the stool. Normal stool color can range from light yellow to brown to almost black. If stool is red, maroon, black, clay-colored, pale, yellow, or green this may signify a problem. Some causes of stool color changes include. hemorrhoids,
What are the symptoms associated with stool color changes?
The symptoms associated with changes in the color of stool generally correspond to the underlying cause. In many instances, there may not be any symptoms associated with changes in stool color.
What Causes Changes in Stool Color, Form, or Texture?
If your stool is black, the cause might be an iron supplement or over-the-counter medicine you took because your stomach felt bad.
What kind of doctor treats stool color changes?
The evaluation of conditions such as intestinal bleeding or diseases of the pancreas, gallbladder, or liver, may warrant careful evaluation by an internist, a primary care provider (PCP) such as a family practitioner or pediatrician, internal medicine physician, general surgeon, or a gastroenterologist (a physician who specializes in diseases of the digestive tract).
When should I seek medical care for stool color changes?
A person should notify their doctor when there is a persistent change in the color of their stool.
What is the treatment for stool color changes?
Other more significant medical causes may require simple or extensive medical evaluation and treatment.
Can changes in Stool color be prevented?
Since stool color can change for a variety of reasons, any preventive measure for a particular cause may play a role in preventing further changes in stool color. For example, if the stool is black and tarry because of a bleeding ulcer, then avoiding medications that can cause bleeding, such as aspirin, may be a reasonable preventive measure. Alcohol abstinence can be a preventive measure against yellow stools resulting from undigested fat in stool due to pancreatic disease. On the other hand, some causes of changes in the color of stool, for instance, cancer of the pancreas, may not be entirely preventable.
What causes dark brown stools?
Dark brown stool. Many foods or medications may naturally cause your stool to change colors, including dark brown or black. Common foods known to do this include licorice, blueberries, beets, anything with food coloring , and food made with blood (i.e., blood sausage).
Why does my poop turn brown?
The slow bleed may eventually cause anemia, which causes fatigue, shortness of breath, and dizziness. Once the blood goes through the digestive system , it turns the stool a darker brown and eventually looks black or tarry.
Why does my stool have a color?
It may also be affected by your nervous system. Sometimes flare-ups are due to stress, diet, or other changes. IBS can have different symptoms depending on the person, but most experience abdominal cramps or discomfort. IBS may affect the color and consistency of your stool.
What does it mean when your stool is dark?
Symptoms. If your stool is a darker color than normal, it may indicate internal bleeding. You can have both upper and lower gastrointestinal (GI) bleeds. Upper GI bleeds tend to be from gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) or ulcers but there are other causes as well.
What causes a stool to turn black?
Many foods or medications may naturally cause your stool to change colors, including looking dark brown or black. Common foods known to do this include licorice, blueberries, beets, red-colored gelatin or food made with blood (ie blood sausage).
Why is my stool dark?
But stool that simply seems darker than normal may be the result of dehydration, constipation, or eating dark-colored foods or iron-rich foods or supplements.
Why do I get dizzy when I poop?
Dizziness. If your stool is a darker color than normal, it may indicate internal bleeding. You can have both upper and lower gastrointestinal (GI) bleeds. Upper GI bleeds tend to be from gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) or ulcers but there are other causes as well.
1. Light brown stool is a normal variant (due to food)
As a rule, all shades of brown stool, such as light brown stools and very dark brown stools, are considered normal. However, your stool color varies according to what you eat and several other factors.
A. Large fatty meals
Too much fat in your meal can turn your stool into light brown. The more fat you eat, the more the fat content of your stool.
2 . Diarrhea (loose stool)
The normal brown color of the stool is a result of the action of gut bacteria on bilirubin (secreted in bile to the gut tract).
3. IBS (irritable bowel syndrome)
IBS is a common bowel disease that affects a large subset of people. It primarily affects the large intestine and is characterized by recurrent abdominal pain and bowel changes.
4. Gut infections
The gastrointestinal tract (gastroenteritis) infections often lead to diarrhea with subsequent light brown or yellow stools.
5. Food intolerance or allergy
Food intolerance is the inability of your digestive system to digest or absorb certain foods. It is a prevalent condition affecting up to 20% of the population. In addition, certain types of food intolerance are prevalent in the community, such as lactose intolerance (which affects about 65% of adult people).
6. Bible-related conditions
The brown color of your stool originates from bilirubin which reaches your intestine through the bile. The bile is formed initially inside the liver, stored in the gallbladder, and released into the duodenum through the bile ducts.